THREE men suspected of killing John and Hester Noble last week Wednesday appeared in the Pinetown Magistrates Court on charges of murder and house robbery.
The accused applied for legal aid lawyers to represent them and were remanded at the Hillcrest Police Station.
The accused said they needed medical attention as they had been assaulted by police and bitten by police dogs, and they wanted their case to be heard in camera.
They also asked to be remanded at Westville prison as they feared for their lives at the Hillcrest Police Station, claiming they have been threatened.
The magistrate, Ishmael Motaung, agreed with the prosecutor, Dumisani Dlungwane, that this is a high profile case and the public needs to know about it.
“It’s just speculation that they have been threatened, the police know the law and they can no longer intervene because this is a court matter, and besides, remanding the accused at the Westville prison could delay the investigation,” said Dlungwane.
Motaung said he had noted all their grievances and will make recommendations of how the accused could be assisted.
The three accused will appear again in court next week Wednesday.
These three were among the eight who were arrested on Tuesday, the other five are suspected of buying stolen goods.
The ninth and last suspect was arrested today in a joint operation between the Shongweni K9 unit and Hillcrest detectives.
